Maharashtra's Bureaucracy Under Scanner As ED And ACB Tighten Probe On Anil Pawar, Rashmi Karandikar, Rajesh Govil Over Scams

Mumbai: Maharashtra’s administrative machinery is currently in turmoil. The Enforcement Directorate (ED) and the Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) are simultaneously zeroing in on senior officials accused of massive financial irregularities and abuse of power. The list of those under scrutiny includes former Vasai-Virar Municipal Commissioner Anil Pawar, IPS officer Rashmi Karandikar, and former Mantralaya deputy secretary Rajesh Govil.

Ex-VVCMC Chief Anil Pawar Arrested by ED

Anil Pawar, an IAS officer of the Maharashtra cadre and former commissioner of Vasai-Virar City Municipal Corporation (VVCMC), was arrested by the ED last week in connection with the alleged illegal construction of 41 buildings spread across 60 acres in the region.

ED, Mumbai has arrested Anil Kumar Khanderao Pawar, IAS, Ex- Commissioner of Vasai Virar City Municipal Corporation (VVCMC); Y. S. Reddy, Deputy Director Town Planning, VVCMC; Sitaram Gupta, Ex-Corporator of Bahujan Vikas Aghadi and Arun Gupta on 13.08.2025 under PMLA in the…

— ED (@dir_ed) August 15, 2025

Investigators allege that Pawar’s tenure at VVCMC facilitated irregular clearances, resulting in significant loss to the exchequer. His role, the agency claims, went beyond administrative oversight, extending into active collusion with builders. Officials said the probe has unearthed evidence suggesting diversion of funds from builders to municipal officers through shell entities and benami accounts. “The scale of illegal approvals points to a quid pro quo arrangement. Preliminary analysis of Pawar’s assets indicates significant disproportionate wealth that cannot be explained from his service income,” the ED sources said.

Last week, the ED also arrested suspended deputy director of town planning (VVCMC) YS Reddy, builder Sitaram Gupta and his nephew Arun Gupta in connection with the aforementioned alleged money laundering case. The agency alleged the existence of a cartel within VVCMC, wherein officials received bribes to overlook illegal construction.

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The ED further claimed that Pawar strengthened the cartel comprising senior VVCMC officers, local builders, and liaison persons. According to the agency, Pawar received Rs25 per sq ft from illegal construction, while the remaining amount was shared among other officials.

Anil Pawar Accused of Luxury Jewellery Purchases

Pawar is also accused of setting up multiple firms in the names of his wife, daughter, and other relatives, engaged in residential construction, redevelopment of towers, and warehouse projects. He allegedly receivedcash from Reddy, which was collected by a relative and invested in properties across the state. Pawar is said to have purchased luxury sarees, pearls, and diamond-studded jewellery through these transactions.

IPS officer Rashmi Karandikar, currently serving as Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP, Civil Defence), is under investigation for alleged misuse of power and financial irregularities. The Economic Offences Wing (EOW) has revealed that Karandikar received Rs2.64 crore from her husband, Purushottam Chavan, in 2017-18. The funds were allegedly used for share trading and were not declared in her official asset statements. While Karandikar has not been formally named as an accused, officials said the ED has closely scrutinised the transactions as part of a broader money-laundering probe into Chavan’s activities.

“The officer’s role is being examined in light of funds transferred from her husband. All assets and transactions are under detailed scrutiny to determine the source of wealth and compliance with service regulations,” a senior official said. Chavan is in judicial custody following his arrest by the ED in connection with a Rs263-crore Income Tax Refund fraud case. He faces charges including cheating, forgery, and criminal conspiracy for defrauding individuals by promising government-quota flats in Mumbai, Thane, and Pune.

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Probe suggest that Chavan allegedly used falsified property documents and misrepresented official approvals. He is being probed through two FIRs registered in January and February 2025 by the EOW, with the ED also involved. The FIRs allege that he defrauded six persons of Rs7.42 crore under the pretext of securing government plots at subsidised rates. He is additionallyaccused of offering contracts to supply T-shirts and hoodies to the Nashik Police Academy between 2015 and 2024.

Police Officer Failed to File Assets on Time

Karandikar, meanwhile, is facing growing legal trouble after allegedly failing to submit her mandatory assets and liabilities declaration to the Director General (DG) of Police’s office within the stipulated deadline. In response to the delay, the DG’s office unsealed her confidential declaration and reportedly discovered that she had failed to disclose a bank account containing Rs2.64 crore.

This omission has triggered the possibility of an ACB probe against her. However, she has claimed that the account in question is operated solely by her husband. The EOW has recorded statements from several complainants and traced complex financial trails linking Chavan’s activities to real estate transactions and bank accounts held jointly or indirectly associated with his family members.

The third official under scrutiny isRajesh Govil, a retired Maharashtra cadre officer and former Deputy Secretary in the state government. He is alleged to have defrauded at least 19 government employees from departments including the Home Department, the DGP’s office, and the Rationing Department. He reportedly promised ownership of government flats in Powai’s Hiranandani Gardens, collected over Rs2.61 crore, but failed to deliver.

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The allegations are detailed in an FIR registered on July 19 this year at Powai police station by Umesh Chandiwade, an Under Secretary in the Home Department. According to the FIR, Govil convinced residents of the Blue Bell staff quarters that he could facilitate the transfer of flats into their names. The alleged fraud occurred between May 9, 2019, and December 24, 2021, and involved manipulation of a 1986 tripartite agreement between Hiranandani Developers, the Maharashtra government, and the MMRDA.

While a 2012 Bombay High Court ruling directed that flats be allotted to state employees at Rs135 per sq ft, Govil allegedly convinced officers that he could expedite ownership transfers using “high-level contacts”, collecting additional sums ranging from Rs1 lakh to Rs15 lakh per person. By 2019, Govil reportedly changed his approach, claiming the legal process would take five to six years, and instead proposed using his connections to secure ownership within 5-7 months for an extra Rs1015 lakh per person.

The police statement of Chandiwade mentions that between May and July 2021, Rs1.5 crore was collected from residents of Wing B by him, while Rs1.11 crore was collected directly from Wing A by Govil. Chandiwade even took a Rs10 lakh loan from a bank and Allied Offices Co-Operative Bank to pay his share.

The cases reflect a broader pattern that law agencies say has become increasingly evident where bureaucrats and police officials leverage positions of influence for personal gain. The ED’s actions, coupled with the ACB’s ongoing probes, mark a renewed emphasis on accountability within the administrative machinery. Officials aware of the investigations caution that more names could surface as financial trails and land records are examined. For now, the spotlight on Pawar, Karandikar and Govil has amplified the debate over systemic corruption and the integrity of the state’s governance framework.